Police launch Christmas crime crackdown

POLICE have kicked down the first of 25 doors in a Christmas crackdown on suspected criminals. Operation Advent Calendar - inspired by the traditional kids' favourite - started yesterday when officers in the Wigan division raided a house in the Atherton area.

POLICE have kicked down the first of 25 doors in a Christmas crackdown on suspected criminals.

Operation Advent Calendar - inspired by the traditional kids' favourite - started yesterday when officers in the Wigan division raided a house in the Atherton area.

Officers will execute similar search warrants across Wigan every day until Christmas.

They have gathered intelligence on 25 suspected criminals, including burglars and drug dealers, as part of their campaign, and will pay them a not-so festive visit during December.

The campaign is designed to prevent the usual rise in burglaries and other crime in the run-up to Christmas.

Supt Shaun Currie said his officers could be knocking down doors instead of opening them on a real Advent calendar.

"We will be continuing to take the fight to the criminals. We are looking at crime like burglary and robbery.

"This is an extension of our work throughout the year to identify criminals and to recover property and evidence and seek prosecutions."

He said that although the theme was light-hearted, the intension of the police was not.

"It's to get the message across to the community that we are doing everything we can to make the community a safer place to live and also it's a reminder to the criminals that we will be continuing in our aim to arrest them and prosecute them.

"Through Operation Advent Calendar we will be targeting people we suspect are involved in acquisitive crime or drugs.

"We are acting on intelligence provided by members of the public through Crimestoppers and from information gathered by police officers and community support officers through contact with the community.

"This information has been reviewed over a period of time and an analytical process has identified a number of premises in the Wigan borough in which it is suspected that the proceeds of criminal offences, such as stolen property, or drugs are present.

"We will be going to the magistrates court to secure 25 warrants and will be opening doors just like on an advent calendar, only we'll be executing warrants and searching premises for proceeds of crime, stolen items and drugs.

"This is another example of proactive use of intelligence to target known offenders."

A similar scheme was trialled in the Trafford division last year and resulted in a reduction in the number of burglaries compared to the previous year.

Intelligence also suggested burglars who had heard about the advent calendar campaign stayed at home because they feared being caught.

A man was arrested following the raid at the first targeted property in Atherton. Police found cannabis and what they believed to be heroin at the scene.